Mosques Pool Tsunami Aid Donations

January 11, 2005|By Noaki Schwartz Miami Bureau

The Council on American-Islamic Relations has announced that South Florida mosques have raised more than $102,000 for tsunami victims in Asia.

Thirteen mosques from Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade counties collected the donations from many of the estimated 50,000 Muslims who live in South Florida. The money is being given to a number of agencies providing tsunami relief, including the American Red Cross, CARE Australia, Islamic Circle of North America and Islamic Relief Worldwide. On Monday evening, the Council of American-Islamic Relations of Florida, known as CAIR, gathered to tally the donations.

The Islamic centers began accepting donations three days after the Dec. 26 tsunami. CAIR asked all the mosques to designate Dec. 29 a tsunami relief day, offering special prayers for the victims.

Helping the afflicted is an important part of being a good Muslim, said Altaf Ali, CAIR's executive director. He said Muslims are expected to donate 2.5 percent of their wealth every year.